This is an Olympic champion of the academic level, he constantly enriches himself with knowledge, constantly improves himself with diligence, although he has a physical disability, but the spiritual world is incomparably rich.
On September 2, Beijing time, in the final of the men's table 8 of the Tokyo Paralympic Games, the Chinese team composed of Zhao Shuai and Peng Weinan defeated the Ukrainian team 2-0 to win the championship. Zhao Shuai thus won his second gold medal at the Paralympic Games, which was also the fourth gold medal of his sports career. Three days ago, he beat his opponent in the men's singles final of the TT8 class to win the championship and win his third consecutive Paralympic title in this event.
Zhao Shuai's Olympic career began in London in 2012, when he won the men's singles championship in table tennis tt8, the first weighty gold medal in his table tennis career. Four years later in Rio, Zhao Shuai defended the project when he was a student at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China. In the blink of an eye, Zhao Shuai has come to the Paralympic Games for the third time, in Tokyo, he achieved three consecutive championships in the single event, and also won a team gold medal. The 4 Paralympic gold medals are the most glorious medals of Zhao Shuai's sports career.
Anyone who has seen Zhao Shuai playing will notice that he holds the racket in his right hand, but uses a strap to hold his hand and the racket together. Zhao Shuai was born in an ordinary family in Wei County, Zhangjiakou, when he was not yet 3 years old, a car accident caused a crushing fracture of his limbs at a young age, and he went to Beijing for treatment after going to many hospitals, Zhao Shuai finally regained consciousness, but he lost his left arm forever. Although the right arm was saved, the thumb function of the right hand could not be restored to normal levels, and the middle finger and ring finger also had different degrees of defects, so Zhao Shuai could only use the strap to tie the racket to his hand. Due to the imperfect function of the right hand holding the beat, his power was different from that of ordinary people, and over time, Zhao Shuai's right hand grinded out a calluse, which, in his words, was as hard as a stone.
At the age of 10, Zhao Shuai began to contact table tennis under the company and guidance of his father, and he soon fell in love with the sport and was able to take the initiative to learn and practice hard. Even if his right arm had inevitable pain in training, Zhao Shuai silently gritted his teeth and held back, and his father made a very detailed training plan for him, giving him the best enlightenment in his table tennis career. Later, Zhao Shuai entered the Hebei Provincial Disabled Table Tennis Training Team and began his career as a professional athlete. Later, he became a member of the national team, achieving consecutive results in various competitions, and finally appeared on the most dazzling Olympic stage for the first time in 2012. Thus, there are today's Paralympic four golds, as well as the third consecutive Paralympic championship in singles events.
Despite his physical disabilities, Zhao Shuai's dreams and spirit are full, he is not only an Olympic champion, but also a hard-working student, and later became a special teacher. In March 2016, Shuai Zhao attended the University of Nottingham Ningbo China with the support of the Deng Yaping Sports Scholarship so that he could continue his higher education in the future. At that time, Zhao Shuai studied and trained without mistakes, and the gold medal at the Rio Paralympic Games was won after the first 40 days of intensive study. After returning from Rio, Zhao Shuai returned to the University of Nottingham Ningbo China for more systematic study, receiving one-on-one English tutoring for a period of one year. Over the years, he's used to memorizing words every day.
Later, Zhao Shuai studied sports training at Beijing Sport University and successfully graduated with a bachelor's degree. In March this year, Zhao Shuai began working at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, becoming a distinguished teacher at the school, choosing his alma mater as the starting point of his teaching career. For the students, Zhao Shuai can not only teach them table tennis knowledge and skills, but also feel full of positive energy from him, which is the best exemplary power. After completing a stage of teaching tasks in May this year, Zhao Shuai threw himself into the preparations for the Tokyo Paralympic Games, aiming to achieve three consecutive individual championships and win the team championship with his teammates.
So far, Zhao Shuai's goals at this Paralympic Games have all been successfully achieved. In the future, Zhao Shuai also hopes that he can pursue a master's degree and continue to improve himself.
Text/Beijing Youth Daily reporter Wang Fan
Editor/Xu Zhao